The Grace Filled Divorce

Divorce is one of those experiences that everyone believes will happen to someone else. So what do you do when it happens to you? As a Christian believer, how can you walk through the valley of divorce and emerge better and not bitter? Christians who check their faith at the courtroom door as they seek to "win" their divorce cases leave their families, communities, churches and, most tragically, their children permanently wounded. In The Grace-Filled Divorce, Dr. Melody Bacon shares a very different perspective on how to approach divorce-one that is an opportunity for personal growth and spiritual formation. Open yourself up to God's grace. Allow it to flow into and through you, so that the confusion and pain you are experiencing can be transformed into a deeper relationship with God, yourself, and others. This book will assist readers in learning How to embrace grief, in order to let go of old ideas, assumptions and perspectives How to recognize and change relationship patterns that contributed to the divorce How to create a workable relationship with an ex-spouse How to use ancient Christian spiritual practices to more fully experience the presence of God How to partner with God to redeem the divorce experience, so that His love may be more fully revealed. Melody Bacon holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, with an emphasis in depth psychology, from Pacifica Graduate Institute and an M.A. in U.S. history from Cal State Northridge. In their private practice, Melody and her husband Ron (a marriage and family therapist), work with couples and individuals facing relationship challenges. They also conduct workshops for pre-engaged couples: Before You Pop the Question, and married couples: Happily Married After. Dr. Bacon is also a teacher and administrator for the Chicago School of Professional Psychology in Southern California where she chairs the Marital and Family Therapy program. She is passionate about blending the insights of psychology with spiritual formation practices and has been inspired by writings of Calvin Miller, John Eldridge and Alan Jones, among others. Her training in Jungian analytic psychology has given her tremendous respect for the ways in which God reveals himself, particularly through dreams. She endeavors to stay at least one step ahead of her clients in learning the lessons that God has to teach. Periodically, she and her husband test the limits of their marriage and spiritual commitment on the golf course.

What's Grace Got to Do with It?The missing ingredient in most marriages ins't love, it's grace. Love inclines us to get married, but we need grace to keep that love healthy, strong and committed. More than simply "nice," grace is that game-changing ingredient that enables us to treat each other the way God treats us-even when we don't deserve it.In Grace Filled Marriage Kimmel explores questions such as:How can you show grace when all your spouse seems to do right now is frustrate you?How can grace ramp up the frequency and temperature of your sex life?How do you show grave without being taken advantage of?How can God help you make grace the default mode in your marriage?Whether your marriage is just beginning, seems healthy, or is struggling on life support, a deeper understanding of the power of grace will help it not just survive, but thrive.

Editor H. Wayne House introduces a lively debate on varying Christian views of divorce and remarriage. Contributors include J. Carl Laney, William Heth, Thomas Edgar and Larry Richards.

Sometimes, grace gets messy. Caleb Kaltenbach was raised by LGBT parents, marched in gay pride parades as a youngster, and experienced firsthand the hatred and bitterness of some Christians toward his family. But then Caleb surprised everyone, including himself, by becoming a Christian…and a pastor. Very few issues in Christianity are as divisive as the acceptance of the LGBT community in the church. As a pastor and as a person with beloved family members living a gay lifestyle, Caleb had to face this issue with courage and grace. Messy Grace shows us that Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself” doesn’t have an exception clause for a gay “neighbor”—or for that matter, any other “neighbor” we might find it hard to relate to. Jesus was able to love these people and yet still hold on to his beliefs. So can you. Even when it’s messy. “Messy Grace is an important contribution to the conversation about sexual identity for churches and leaders. Caleb's story is surprising and unique, and he weaves it together compellingly. He states his views clearly, leaves room for disagreement, and champions love no matter where you are in this conversation.” —Jud Wilhite, Sr. Pastor, Central Christian Church

Illumination Book Award WinnerUplifting, practical and inspiring this award-winning divorce recovery book helps you with real-life issues and takes you on a journey that can change your life for the better. Selected as an exemplary Christian self-help book by the Illumination Book Awards, Peace after Divorce walks you through a process that helps you cope with and heal from divorce. Learn Ways To: Move beyond the pain of separation and divorce; Deal with loneliness and divorce grief; Win the battle with your thoughts, Choose healing actions; Cope more effectively with your ex or soon-to-be ex; Help children cope with separation and divorce; Enjoy life after divorce as a single adult; and more.Don't Become One of the Walking Wounded! Click to Order Your Copy Now. For individual or group use. Christian divorce recovery curriculum and leader materials are available through After Divorce Ministries.

“This book walks each of us through the reality checks we need in order to have the marriage we want!” —Shaunti Feldhahn, social researcher and best-selling author of For Women Only In today’s workplace, women are often rewarded for having type A personalities: driven, demanding, ambitious, and strong. Yet when it comes to their marriages, those same traits can backfire. After all, no one goes into marriage hoping for a promotion. What is a wife to do? April Cassidy knows this struggle firsthand. She thought she was a great Christian wife and begged God to make her passive husband into a more loving, involved, godly leader. Instead, God opened her eyes to changes that she needed to make, such as laying down her desire for control and offering genuine, unconditional respect—not just love—to her husband. Cassidy’s conclusions may be as startling to readers as they were to her, but The Peaceful Wife shares how she and many others have learned to reorient their lives to biblical commands—resulting in healthier, happier marriages. In the end, you’ll find The Peaceful Wife a powerful path to God’s design for women to live in full submission to Christ as Lord.

You speak God’s truth when you counsel. But do you also communicate His grace? The Christian counselor or pastor plays an important role in helping people process the trauma they’ve experienced. Too often, a client leaves the counselor’s office with feelings of guilt and shame. They feel the heavy burden of what they did wrong. But somehow, they’ve missed the grace of God that makes things right again. A counseling model that stays true to a biblical worldview will overflow with grace . . . not cheap grace, but real grace that acknowledges sin while offering a hopeful path to redemption and healing. In Grace-Based Counseling, professional counselors Richard Fowler and Natalie Ford offer a model that blends the truths of Scripture, the science of psychology, and the everlasting hope of the gospel. In this book you will find: New, grace-based counseling model Detailed application of the model, with case studies Practical toolbox with surveys, assessments, and counseling helps A Christian counseling model can’t just be about admonishment. That approach only leads to shame and human efforts that are doomed to fail. But when the gospel is brought to bear in the counseling relationship, real life change is possible. Then the counselor becomes an instrument of divine grace in the hands of a faithful God.